Non-transactional dashboard
Project Involvement
Role
VP Design
Team
Growth Crew
Context & Challenge
Organisation & Role
At the start of 2020, Habito directed all customers into a single long-form fact find experience. This aimed to gather detailed information, match them with an advisor and deliver a mortgage recommendation. At the time, we had no segmentation and no alternative journeys for users with different needs. As VP Design, working closely with fellow VPs in Product and Engineering, I led a cross-functional initiative to rethink this approach.
Problem Statement
We found that a large proportion of customers weren’t ready to proceed to a mortgage recommendation. For those earlier in their journey, the existing flow wasn’t providing value, and it wasn’t efficient for us to keep funnelling them into a high-effort, high-cost process.
Stakeholders
Key stakeholders included the SLT, Product, Engineering, and our advisors. There was healthy scepticism around diverting 80% of our user base away from what had always been the core product funnel.
Strategic Approach
Vision & Objectives
The goal was to design a better experience for non-transactional customers (NTCs) – those in earlier stages of buying – while increasing efficiency for our brokerage operations. We wanted to help users understand their place in the home-buying journey, reduce anxiety around mortgage acceptance, and improve the quality of leads flowing to our advisors.
Decision-Making Process
We leaned on previous discovery research and initiated a generative study to understand how first-time buyers move from thinking about buying to taking action. This research shaped our direction and helped us reframe the journey into something more personalised and progressive. We made decisions collaboratively across Product, Design, and Engineering leadership.
Research findings
- First-time buyers feel overwhelmed – They struggle to filter crucial information from rumors and need guidance more than just information. They trust advice from friends, family, and trusted experts like MSE.
- Process confusion – Buyers don't understand the sequence of steps or responsibilities in the home-buying journey.
- MiP builds confidence – Getting a Mortgage in Principle gives buyers the confidence to move forward.
- Acceptance concerns – Buyers worry not just about borrowing amounts but about mortgage approval likelihood and improving their chances.
Collaboration
I supported the Product Designer in opening up ideation beyond a single content-hub concept. Through workshops and critique, we encouraged the team to focus deeply on the customer problems and explore a broader range of possible solutions.
Execution & Leadership
Implementation
We introduced an orientation flow that helped customers self-identify their stage in the journey, allowing us to segment non-transactional users. We then created a new dashboard experience for them, housing tools like our self-service MiP (mortgage in principle), and later a mortgage readiness check. This “pre-application” space laid the groundwork for future tools and content.
Adaptability
One of the early creative tensions was a focus on passive content. I coached the team to think in terms of experiential learning rather than just information delivery. Instead of building another MSE-style site, we chose to guide users through actionable tools like a personal timeline and mortgage “health check”.
Communication
Stakeholder management was ongoing and crucial. Diverting the majority of users from our traditional product required significant trust. We moved to weekly growth crew product reviews, invited cross-functional critique, and aligned closely with other VPs to build confidence across the SLT.
Outcomes & Impact
Results
The A/B test hit a 49% conversion to submission, just shy of our 50% target, and we set the experience live. It was widely seen as a success, giving us a platform to support and convert non-transactional customers in a much more scalable way.
We did see a negative impact on Habito Plus conversion (from around 30% down by more than half), which had previously been sold by advisors. In response, we began building a Plus quoting journey into the new NTC dashboard, forming a major part of the Q1 goal.
Feedback
The experience has become the default for the majority of our customers and is reshaping how we think about the product. Internal teams have recognised the increased focus and direction the NTC dashboard provides.
Reflection
Creating a forked experience like this was a significant strategic bet. We reduced drop-off, improved conversion quality, and opened up opportunities to support customers earlier and more meaningfully. It also gave us a reason to reconsider how we structure the growth crew, splitting into brokerage growth and NTC growth to serve both needs more effectively.
Key Learnings & Takeaways
Lessons Learned
Guiding a team out of a premature solution and towards reframing the problem space was one of the more valuable outcomes. It highlighted the importance of aligning problem definition before solution execution.
Application
I’ve since applied this principle of “multiple ideas before multiple solutions” in other strategic work. It avoids tunnel vision and creates space for better, more unexpected outcomes.
Future Outlook
The success of the NTC dashboard has shifted how we think about the product. Habito was a brokerage-first experience, now we are seeing a future where non-transactional support and education becomes the core product, with the application itself being a shorter, smoother part of the journey.